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THREE BOMBS DETONATE IN QUETTA

Date Reported: Tuesday, April 25, 2000
Incident Type: SECURITY
Country: KARACHI, PAKISTAN

Incident: The American Consulate in Karachi submitted the following assessment of recent bomb activity in Quetta:

Three bombs detonated in Quetta inside Balochistan Government facilities on April 24 in an apparent statement of dissatisfaction by an unknown group, calling themselves "The Balochistan Liberation Army," over the alleged arrest of over 100 fellow tribe members. It appears that the destruction was intentionally planned to occur when no one was in the areas of detonation.

On April 24, the Karachi Consular District experienced another series of bombings. The first bomb detonated at 2:35 PM in the office of the commissioner in Quetta. The bomb was planted in a side room off the commissioner's office and detonated 35 minutes after all employees normally had left that area of the offices. This would seem to signal an intent to register discontent rather than murder.

The second explosive device detonated at 3:07 PM in the Civil Secretariat Building in an out-of-the-way side hallway, once again sending a message, not intending to kill.

The third explosion rocked the Ministerial Building at 3:18 PM. This bomb was under the air conditioning unit in the Home Secretary's office and was the most powerful of the three devices.

Each of the three bombs were originally estimated to be approximately two pounds, but after the bomb technician completed his evaluation, he informed the RSO that they were closer to about one pound each with the third being slightly larger. No one was killed in the explosions due to apparent careful planning and timing; however, five persons who happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time were injured. The detonators were reported to be a form of chemical timing device.

The year 2000 has been the most "bomb active" in several years. Cumulative in 1998, there were 15 bomb blasts that caused 12 deaths and 107 injuries. Cumulative in 1999, there were 12 bomb blasts that resulted in 16 deaths and 124 injuries. In 2000 year-to-date, there have been 21 bomb blasts that have resulted in 28 deaths and 161injuries.